Orthopedic device



July 7, 1964 H. H. STRYKER ORTHOPEDIC DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 6, 1961 INVENTOR HOME 9 H. STQVKEE BY awn, zwwww ATTORNEYS July 7, 1964 H. H. STRYKER ORTHOPEDIC DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 6, 1961 INVENTOR.

HOME? H STPVKEP MQMWW A TTOP/VEVS United States Patent 3,139,884 ORTHOPEDIC DEVICE Homer H. Stryker, Kalamazoo, Mich assignor to Stryker Corporation, a corporation of Michigan Filed Nov. 6, 1961, Ser. No. 150,328 10 Claims. (Cl. 128-83) This invention relates in general to a portable apparatus for supporting a human limb while a plaster cast is being applied to a portion thereof and, more particularly, to a portable apparatus including a clamp which is arranged and constructed for engaging a human foot, for example, to support and suspend the adjacent portion of the leg and thereby minimize the interference of such apparatus with the application of a cast to the lower portion of the leg.

Often it is at least advantageous, if not necessary, to apply a plaster cast to a human limb, such as a leg, when a conventional, full size cast table is not readily available. For the lack of a better way of meeting the problem it has been common practice either to use temporary splints on the limb until the patient could be removed to a hospital or clinic having a cast table, or to use some makeshift device to support the injured limb while the cast is being applied thereto.

While considering this probile, the applicant conceived a portable apparatus, which can be carried in a relatively small and lightweight package, and which can be easily and quickly assembled by any doctor desirous of applying a plaster cast. Thus, a doctor who is called upon from time to time to apply plaster casts to human limbs can conveniently include this apparatus with his standard equipment for emergency calls.

Accordingly, a primary object of this invention has been the provision of a portable apparatus for supporting a human limb while a plaster cast is being applied thereto.

A further object of this invention has been the provision of a portable limb supporting device which is particularly adapted for supporting a human leg while a plaster cast is applied thereto, and particularly to the lower portion thereof including the foot.

A further object of this invention has been the provision of a portable limb supporting device, as aforesaid, which can be quickly and easily assembled from parts which can be placed in a relatively small package for easy transport to and from their place of use, such device being capable of easy adjustment and adaptation to a variety of uses with limbs of widely varying sizes and shapes.

A further object of this invention has been the provision of a portable limb supporting device, as aforesaid, which is extremely easy to operate, which is neat in appearance, which can be easily cleaned, which requires a minimum of parts and maintenance, and which can be constructed economically.

Other objects and purposes of the invention will become apparent to persons familiar with this type of equipment upon reading the following descriptive material and examining the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a device embodying the invention as applied to a human leg.

FIGURE 2 is a broken perspective view of said device.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragment of the structure shown in FIGURE 1, including the clamp mechanism thereof.

FIGURE 4 is an end elevational view of the clamp mechanism appearing in FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along the line V-V in FIGURE 3 FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along a line VIVI in FIGURE 3.

3,139,884 Patented July 7, 1964 FIGURE 7 is a side View of said clamp mechanism illustrating the use thereof to engage and support a hand.

General Description The objects and purposes of the invention, including those set forth above, have been met by providing a portable limb supporting device comprised of a frame structure including a pair of spaced, upright members and a tie member adjustably and removably connected to and between said upright members. A support element is mounted upon one of said upright members for engaging a leg, for example, beneath the knee joint thereof. A clamp mechanism is supported upon the other upright member and has padded, automatically adjustable, jaws for engaging the foot of said leg near the toes thereof and thereby supporting the foot in a suspended position.

For convenience in description, the terms upper, lower and words of similar import, as used herein, will have reference to the device and parts thereof as appearing in FIGURE 1. The terms inner, outer and derivatives thereof, will have reference to the geometric center of said device and parts thereof.

General Construction The limb supporting apparatus 9, one preferred embodiment of which is disclosed in FIGURE 1, is comprised of a frame 11) having a pair of spaced upright members 11 and 12, which are connected together, and held in upright position, by a tie member 13, which may be an elongated rod. Specifically, the upright member 11 is T- shaped and has a base bar 16 and an upright bar 17, which are preferably fabricated from hollow tubing and are preferably welded together. The upright member 12 is L-shaped and includes a base bar 18 and an upright bar 19, which are also preferably fabricated from hollow metal tubing and rigidly secured to each other, as by welding.

The base bar 18 (FIGURE 2) has a rod opening 23 therethrough near the upright bar 19, and the base bar 16 has a rod opening 22 thethrough approximately midway between one end thereof and the upright bar 17. Thus, when the base bars 16 and 18 are substantially parallel and transversely aligned, and when the upright bars 17 and 19 are also substantially parallel, the rod openings 22 and 23 are axially aligned for slidable reception of the opposite ends of tie rod 13. A pair of manually operable set screws 24 and 25 are threadedly received through appropriate openings in the base bars 16 and 18 adjacent the rod openings 22 and 23 for engaging the portions of the tie rod 13 which are disposed in the openings 22 and 2 3, for the purpose of holding said tie rod 13 firmly with respect to said base bars.

The upright bar 19 of the member 12 (FIGURE 2) has one or more, here two, rod openings 27 which are axially parallel with the lengthwise extent of the base bar 18. A support rod or element 28 is slidably received at one end thereof into one of the rod openings 27 so that the other end of the rod 28 extends substantially parallel with, and preferably beyond the midpoint of, the base bar 13. A manually operable set screw 29 is threadedly received through an appropriate threaded opening in the upright bar 19 adjacent each rod opening 27 for the purpose of engaging the portion of the rod 28 disposed in the rod opening and thereby rigidly holding said rod with respect to the upright bar 19.

A substantially L-shaped support member 32 (FIG- URES 1 and 2) has a vertical element 33 which is slidably and rotatably received into the upper end of the opening 34 through the upright bar '17. A set screw 36 is threadedly received into a threaded opening in said upright bar 17 near its upper end for engaging the vertical element 33 and thereby holding said support member 32 fixedly with respect to the end member 11.

The clamp 37 (FIGURES 2 and 3) is comprised of a pair of levers 38 and 39 having pairs of sidewardly extending, integral ears 41, 42 and 43, 44, respectively, approximately midway between their opposite ends. The cars 41, 42 and 43, 44 have alignable pivot openings through which the pivot shaft 46 is receivable to hold said ears, hence the levers 38 and 39, for pivotal movement only with respect to each other. The pivot shaft 46 is encircled by a spiral spring 47 having end portions 48 and 49 (FIGURE 3) which engage the opposing surfaces of the upper ends 51 and 52 of the levers 38 and 39, respectively to urge resiliently the lower ends 53 and 54 of said levers toward each other.

The lever 38 has a vertically elongated opening 56 adjacent the ears 41 and 42 through which the free end of the horizontal element 57 of the support member 32 is loosely receivable. The cars 41 and 42 and the free end of the horizontal element 57 have alignable pin openings 58, 59 and 60, respectively, through which the pivot pin 62 is slidably receivable for pivotally supporting the lever 38, hence entire clamp 37, upon the support member 32. The pivot pin 62 may be connected to the support member 32 by a chain 63.

A pair of elongated jaws 64 and 65 (FIGURES 3 and 4) are mounted upon the opposing sides of, and extend transversely of, the lower ends 53 and 54 of the levers 38 and 39. In this particular embodiment, the jaws 64 and 65 have metal backing plates 67 and 68, the backing plate 67 being rigidly secured to the lower end portion 53 by the two rivets 69 and the back plate 68 being pivotally secured to the lower end portion 54 by a single rivet 71.

The jaws 64 and 65 (FIGURES 3 and include resilient, flexible pads 72 and 73 which are secured, as by a suitable adhesive, to the opposing sides of the plates 67 and 68, respectively. The plate 67 has a lengthwise ridge 74 on its inner surface adjacent the lower edge thereof for reasons appearing hereinafter. Accordingly, the pad 72 upon the plate 67 projects slightly toward the pad 73 in the region of the ridge 74. The backing plate 68 has an outwardly extending flange 76 extending along its lower edge for both control and protection purposes, as explained hereinafter.

The extent to which the jaws 64 and 65 can be urged toward each other by the spring 47 is positively limited by the stop element 77 which is pivotally supported at its upper end upon the pivot shaft 46 adjacent the ear 41. More specifically, the cars 41 and 43 (FIGURE 3) have in their lower edges the notches 78 and 79, respectively, which have opposing edges 82 and 83, respectively. The stop element 77, which may be fabricated from hardened metal or the like, is L-shaped (FIGURE 6) and the inwardly extending flange 84 at the lower end thereof is engaged by said edges 82 and 83 just as the pads 72 and 73 on said jaws are about to touch each other. Thus, the stop element 77 prevents the spring 47 from crushing the pads 72 and 73 continuously against each other and thereby prolongs their effective life.

Operation It will be apparent from the foregoing descriptive material, with particular reference to FIGURES 1 and 2, that the frame of the support apparatus 9 can be quickly assembled for use by inserting the tie rod 13 into the openings 22 and 23 in the base bars 16 and 18, respectively, and thereafter tightening the set screws 24 and 25. The support rod 28 is then mounted upon the upright bar 19 and the support member 32 is mounted upon the upright bar 17 after which the clamp 37 is mounted upon the support member 32 and pivotally connected thereto by the pivot pin 62. The support apparatus is now in condition for use.

The support apparatus 9 (FIGURES 1 and 2) may be placed upon the floor or upon a table after which the patient is placed on the floor or table adjacent the apparatus so that his leg 86 can be positioned thereon. That is, the knee portion 87 of the leg 86 is supported upon and directly above the support rod 28 and the portion of the foot 39 near the toes 88 thereof is gripped between the jaws 64 and 65. The strength of the spring 47 is preferably such that the upper end portions 51 and 52 of the levers 38 and 39, respectively, can be manually urged together while the toes 88 are being inserted between the jaws 64 and 65. If, after the foot 89 has been gripped by the clamp 37, the knee 87 is not located exactly where desired with respect to the support rod 28, one or both of the set screws 24 and 25 may be loosened and the upright members 11 and 12 can be moved with respect to each other until the proper adjustment is achieved. Likewise, the support member 32 can be adjusted vertically and around a vertical axis with respect to the upright bar 17 for appropriate adjustment of the clamp 37, after which the set screw 36 is tightened.

The jaw 65, being loosely connected to the lower end of the lever 39 by a single rivet 71, automatically adjusts itself to the sloping contour of the upper side of the foot 89, which it engages. The ridge 74 in the backing plate 67 fits snugly within the transverse concavity 91 in the bottom of the foot 89 along the line where the toes extend therefrom. Accordingly, the ridge 74 tends to prevent an accidental release of the foot 89 from the jaws 64 and 65 without requiring excessive, and possibly injurious, compression of the foot 89 between the jaws 64 and 65.

Since the entire lower portion of the leg 86 is supported by a single rod 28 and the clamp 37 engages little more than the toes 88, by far the biggest part of the leg 86 remains completely exposed for applying a plaster cast thereto. Particularly and, more importantly, the entire calf, the entire ankle and most of the foot are completely unobstructed and easily accessible for applying a conventional uninterrupted cast from the toes to the knee. The flange 76 on the backing plate 68 of jaw 65 (FIGURE 1) shores up the plaster being applied to the top of the foot so that the cast will not obstruct the removal of the clamp 37 and will not interfere with the movement of the toes after the plaster has set.

FIGURE 7 illustrates an alternate use for the clamp 37 to support a human hand 92, hence the adjacent portion of the arm connected thereto. By using a clamp 37 to engage and support a human hand 92, the wrist and elbow of the arm attached to said hand can be held in a proper position for applying a plaster cast thereto. The fingers 93 of the hand 92 are engaged between the jaws 64 and 65 in substantially the same manner that the toes 88 of the foot 89 are engaged between said jaws in FIGURE 1. Adjustment of the support member 32 upwardly and sidewardly away from its position of FIGURE 1 may be required where the clamp 37 is used for this purpose.

Under some circumstances, it may be desirable to use the clamp 37 for positioning the foot of a patient who is lying in the prone position while a cast is being applied to the foot and ankle of such patient. In this case, the clamp 37 is preferably mounted in a sidewardly opening position and the pivoted jaw 65 is located on the lower side of the clamp. In order to perform this function, the lever 39 is preferably modified to include an opening for the element 57 and a pair of openings for the pin 62, which openings may be identical to their counterparts in the lever 38.

Although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed above in detail, it will be understood that variations or modifications of such disclosure, which come within the scope of the appended claims, are fully contemplated.

What is claimed is: I 1. An apparatus for supporting a human leg while a cast is being applied to a portion thereof, comprising:

a base structure having apair of spaced, upright members', and means for adjusting said upright members toward and away from each other;

a support element mounted upon and extending sidewardly from one of said upright members for engaging and supporting a leg adjacent the knee joint thereof;

a clamp and means adjustably supporting said clamp upon the other upright member, said clamp having a pair of pivotally connected levers with padded jaws mounted thereon and arranged for engaging the portion of the foot on said leg adjacent the toes of the foot, said clamp being spaced horizontally fromsaid support element a distance corresponding to the distance between said knee joint and said foot, and at least one of said jaws being movable around the pivot axis of said levers towards and away from said support element; and

resilient means urging said jaws together, said clamp being arranged so that the foot is gripped between said jaws and supported by said clamp when the portion of said leg adjacent said knee joint is resting upon said support element.

2. A portable apparatus for supporting a human leg while a cast is being applied to a portion of the leg including the foot thereof, comprising:

a base frame including a pair of spaced, upright members and means adjustably connected to and extending between said upright members;

a support element mounted upon and extending sidewardly from one of said upright members at a point adjacent the upper end thereof and spaced substantially from the lower end thereof, said element being engageable with the leg beneath the knee joint thereof for supporting same;

a clamp supporting rod mounted upon the other upright member adjacent the upper end thereof and spaced substantially from the lower end thereof, said rod extending in a direction toward said support element;

a manually operable clamp including a pair of pivotally connected levers having padded jaws mounted upon said levers for movement therewith toward and away from each other so that said jaws move at right angles to the support element, one of said levers being mounted upon said clamp supporting rod, said jaws being engageable with the portion of a foot adjacent the toes thereof; and

resilient means urging said jaws toward each other, whereby a foot can be engaged between said jaws adjacent said toes and thereby supported when the leg is resting upon said support element.

3. The structure of claim 2 wherein said clamp supporting rod is adjustable along, and pivotally around, a vertical axis;

wherein said one lever is mounted upon said clamp supporting rod for pivotable movement around a substantially horizontal axis; and

including means for limiting movement of such jaws toward each other under the urging of said resilient means.

4. The structure of claim 2 wherein one of said jaws on said clamp is pivotally supported upon its lever whereby the relative positions of said jaws are automatically adapted and adjusted to engage, one at a time, feet of different shapes.

5. In a structure for supporting a human limb in a position for applying a plaster cast to a substantial portion of said limb, said structure including a frame having an upright member with a sidewardly extending element thereon, a clamping mechanism mountable upon said sidewardly extending element for engaging said limb near the extremity thereof, comprising:

a pair of similar, lever members, each lever member having a pair of sidewardly extending, spaced and substantially parallel ears approximately midway between the ends thereof, said ears having axially aligned pivot openings;

a pivot shaft extending through said axially aligned pivot openings in said ears for pivotally holding said lever members with respect to each other;

pivot pin means for pivotally supporting one of said lever members adjacent the ears thereof upon the free end of the sidewardly extending element on the upright member of the frame;

resilient means disposed between said lever members and continuously urging one pair of corresponding ends thereof toward each other;

stop means extending between said lever members for limiting movement of said one pair of corresponding ends thereof toward each other; and

a pair of jaws supported respectively upon the opposing sides of said one pair of ends of said lever members, the jaw on the other lever member being pivotally supported with respect thereto, said jaws having resiliently flexible pads on their adjacent surfaces, whereby the extremity of the human limb can be firmly gripped and safely held between said jaws.

6. An apparatus for supporting a human leg, comprising:

a base frame having a pair of spaced, upright members;

a support element mounted on one of said upright members adjacent the upper end thereof and extending sidewardly therefrom whereby a leg can be supported thereon at a point beneath the knee joint thereof;

a support member mounted at one end thereof on the upper end of the other upright member and extending therefrom at approximately right angles to and in a direction toward said support element;

releasable clamp means, and support means mounting said clamp means on said support member for receiving and releasably clamping said leg near the toes thereon, said clamp means including a pair of pivotally connected clamping members having jaws mounted upon said members, said jaws being relatively movable in directions toward and away from each other and at right angles to said support element, and resilient means urging said jaws together, said jaws being spaced from said support element a distance corresponding to the distance between said knee joint and said toes on said leg, the entirety of the zone between said clamp means and said support element being unobstructed whereby the leg will be completely exposed so that a cast can be conveniently applied thereto.

7 An apparatus for supporting a human limb, comprlsmgz a base frame having a pair of spaced, upright members, said members being laterally offset with respect to each other;

a support element mounted on one of said upright members and extending laterally therefrom to a point in front of and spaced from said other upright member whereby a limb can be supported thereon at a point spaced from the extremity thereof and said limb may extend toward said other upright member;

a support member mounted at one end thereof on said other upright member and extending therefrom substantially horizontally toward said support element;

releasable clamp means mounted on said support member and extending therebelow, said clamp means including relatively movable clamp members which provide a clamping zone which opens downwardly so that the extremity of said limb can be received therein from below said support member and can be relcasably clamped thereby.

8. Apparatus according to claim 7, in which said base frame includes a pair of substantially parallel, horizontally extending base bars respectively secured to the lower ends of said upright members; and

a horizontal tie member extending between said base bars and means for releasably securing said tie member to said base bars whereby said base bars can be moved toward and away from each other.

9. Apparatus according to claim 7 wherein said support member is substantially L-shaped and has a vertically extending leg which is releasably and vertically adjustably secured to said other upright member, said clamp means including a pair of pivotally connected jaws which are relatively movable in directions toward and away from said support element, one of said jaws being pivotally mounted on the horizontally extending leg of said support member; and

resilent means urging said jaws toward each other.

10. In a structure for supporting a human limb in a position for applying a plaster cast to a substantial portion of said limb, said structure including a frame having an upright member with a sidewardly extending element thereon, a clamping mechanism mountable upon said sidewardly extending element for engaging said limb near the extremity thereof, comprising:

a pair of similar, lever members, each lever member having a pair of sidewardly extending, spaced and substantially parallel ears, said ears having axially aligned pivot openings;

a pivot shaft extending through said axially aligned pivot openings in said ears for pivotally holding said lever members with respect to each other;

means for supporting one of said lever members adjacent the ears thereof upon the free end of the sidewardly extending element on the upright member of the frame;

resilient means disposed between said lever members and continuously urging one pair of corresponding ends thereof toward each other; and

a pair of jaws supported respectively upon the opposing sides of said one pair of ends of said lever members, the jaw on the other lever member being pivotally supported with respect thereto, said jaws having resiliently flexible pads on their adjacent surfaces, whereby the extremity of the human limb can be firmly gripped and safely held between said jaws.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 580,954 Ray Apr. 20, 1897 1,562,150 Denton Nov. 17, 1925 2,067,567 Gruca Jan. 12, 1937 2,590,739 Wagner et a1. Mar. 25, 1952 2,815,777 Iraids Dec. 10, 1957 OTHER REFERENCES De Puy Fracture Appliances (catalogue) June 24, 1954 (159 pp. only page 43 Fig. 174 relied on). 

1. AN APPARATUS FOR SUPPORTING A HUMAN LEG WHILE A CAST IS BEING APPLIED TO A PORTION THEREOF, COMPRISING: A BASE STRUCTURE HAVING A PAIR OF SPACED, UPRIGHT MEMBERS, AND MEANS FOR ADJUSTING SAID UPRIGHT MEMBERS TOWARD AND AWAY FROM EACH OTHER; A SUPPORT ELEMENT MOUNTED UPON AND EXTENDING SIDEWARDLY FROM ONE OF SAID UPRIGHT MEMBERS FOR ENGAGING AND SUPPORTING A LEG ADJACENT THE KNEE JOINT THEREOF; A CLAMP AND MEANS ADJUSTABLY SUPPORTING SAID CLAMP UPON THE OTHER UPRIGHT MEMBER, SAID CLAMP HAVING A PAIR OF PIVOTALLY CONNECTED LEVERS WITH PADDED JAWS MOUNTED THEREON AND ARRANGED FOR ENGAGING THE PORTION OF THE FOOT ON SAID LEG ADJACENT THE TOES OF THE FOOT, SAID CLAMP BEING SPACED HORIZONTALLY FROM SAID SUPPORT ELEMENT A DISTANCE CORRESPONDING TO THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID KNEE JOINT AND SAID FOOT, AND AT LEAST ONE OF SAID JAWS BEING MOVABLE AROUND THE PIVOT AXIS OF SAID LEVERS TOWARDS AND AWAY FROM SAID SUPPORT ELEMENT; AND RESILIENT MEANS URGING SAID JAWS TOGETHER, SAID CLAMP BEING ARRANGED SO THAT THE FOOT IS GRIPPED BETWEEN SAID JAWS AND SUPPORTED BY SAID CLAMP WHEN THE PORTION OF SAID LEG ADJACENT SAID KNEE JOINT IS RESTING UPON SAID SUPPORT ELEMENT. 